Looking into a 7-day Holland America inside passage cruise vs taking flights to Glacier Bay National Park and taking a day cruise amongst the glaciers on our own.
Not into night life or drinking and don’t like crowds…so that would be votes against the cruise. But..ease of travel and lower costs have me considering it. (Seeing good last-minute deals).
Looking for any advice!
Also, would combine either trip with a couple of days in Vancouver and Victoria.
Thanks!
Or maybe you could do a combo cruise and land trip in Denali? We did a 7 day on Princess. It was a family trip and was fun but yes, the big ships can be overwhelming. Could you do a smaller ship like a National geographic ship (30-50 cabins)? The Windstar, Seabourn or other small ships (eg American cruise lines, Crystal, Viking etc) are more intimate and can get into passages that the big ships cannot, if budget allows.
We did this- it was great. Holland ships aren’t as big as some others and it never felt that crowded to me. Night life is not the draw on that ship and they are one of the only cruise lines allowed into glacier bay and that day is pretty incredible- they bring park rangers on board to give presentations and narrate what you are seeing. The food was solid and we enjoyed our port days too. We had a multi generational group with us and everyone loved it- teens to grandparents. Even my cruise hating husband enjoyed it.
I have not done any cruises, but we have seriously considered an Alaska cruise. What I heard is that the smaller ships (200 ppl or less) can get to places the bigger ships can’t. We would only consider a small ship (followed by a land based trip to hopefully see Denali).
I hope you make it, and have a wonderful time whatever you choose.
We did this cruise a few years ago and really enjoyed it. It is the only bigger ship (2,400 person – considered a mid-size ship) cruise we have taken to date but would take another Holland American cruise in the future based on the experience.
The nightlife you can take or leave --the ship is large enough that you can always find a quiet place to relax or go back to your cabin. FWIW we went to some of the evening shows on the large stage and found the jazz band enjoyable. They did not have classical music for our trip but you can see if that is an option some nights.
I’d recommend you get a set dinner time – it saves time waiting for a table at night.
We did spend a lovely couple of days in Vancouver prior to the cruise but did not go to Victoria.
Feel free to PM if you want more details.
We just did an Alaska cruise with Viking, 930 passengers. Lowest level cabin has a balcony (no windowless cabins or cabins with portholes). Eat where you want, wifi included, as is beer/wine/soda with lunch and dinner. An included excursion in each port (11 days, 7 ports)–granted, some are just walking tours, but a few were bus tours that were very informative, Mendenhall Glacier visit was a highlight).
We are not night lifers either, and Viking has a very modest evening show (4 singers and a small band). What we thought was outstanding was the lecture series. They had 4 lecturers, a historian, a naturalist, an astronomer, and a professional tour guide who spoke on what to see in each port (evening ‘port talk’ was all about logistics, not what to see and do). Each gave at least 3 talks about the wildlife, history of Alaska, indigenous peoples, etc. We also did a post cruise land tour, 6 nights, also with Viking. From the east coast it is a haul to get to Alaska, so why not.
Yes, Viking is more expensive than some, but we see the value in what they include. As past river cruise customers, we get a small discount as well.
To piggyback on what @happy1 stated, if a cruise is entirely in the US, there is a 1920s law that requires the ship to be US built, and for the crew to be entirely from the US. As a result, Alaska cruises either start in Vancouver (which makes the cruise international), or if it starts in Seattle, there is a stop in Victoria for the same reason.
While I am babbling on, if you have balance issues or are concerned about rough water, cruises that leave Vancouver sail EAST of Vancouver Island, in sheltered waters. Cruises that leave Seattle often sail WEST of Vancouver Island, more exposed to open ocean. Just something to consider.
I will stop now
We found the Holland American ship to be very stable – felt very slight rocking only a couple of times. H and I did use those ear patches as a precaution.
FWIW we chose Holland American as it is one of (I believe) two cruise lines that can go through Glacier National Park.
Thanks everyone!
I just put a 24 hour hold on an Anchorage → Vancouver trip. I think i might have gotten the last room available, as there was only one room left to choose if I wanted to choose my own.
Since it was the very most forward room, and I’d prefer something less forward, I opted to let them chose my room thinking it wouldn’t be worse.
Thoughts?
I hear Holland America is one of the best lines to pick for Alaska because they have preferred docking locations and routes.
One tip, make sure the times you will be in port. Alaska can be strange as far as port times, I wouldn’t want early morning dock, leave early afternoon times myself. Especially if you’d like to go on shore to shop or eat.
I’m not familiar with HA, is there an option to upgrade? I personally would pick the room and not have a guarantee room as I’m a control freak person. A forward cabin doesn’t sound ideal with motion sickness though. Not sure if the guarantee room was cheaper?
Sounds like a great trip. If you like YouTube videos, I find that they are very informative. Lots of options with cruising.
We really enjoyed the Holland America Alaska cruise we went on! It was several years ago. We went because it was an opportunity to get our kids together with their grandparents in a beautiful and interesting setting. But we liked it enough that we’ve thought about going a 2nd time.
We chose our room to keep control over room size, having a veranda, what deck the room is on, as well as the position of the room on the ship. That said, the ship we were on felt very stable and I expect we would have been fine anywhere.
Also FWIW we did a different route (starting and ending in Vancouver) but they all look great!
I would see if you can reserve a dinner time and look at excursions quickly as they do close out.
Hope you enjoy! Sounds wonderful!
We did this last year with Holland America for CE (I’m a dentist). We were initially concerned because we typically cruise on high end cruise lines (Seabourn, Regent Seven Seas, etc). And had just done a 10 night Mediterranean cruise on Regent’s brand new boat, Mariner (which was fantastic) 2 months earlier.
Because my practice was paying we decided to try it…we were pleasantly surprised I thought the food was really good and the entertainment was as well. It’s a little more bare bones…not all the bells and whistles…but they really did a good job and the ports of call were great.
Would recommend it for an Alaskan cruise for sure
We did an inside passage Princess cruise (opposite direction) - I imagine HA is similar. We are not nightlife people, and although we enjoy a social drink, we did not drink on the cruise (our teenage kids were with us). We just had a nice time hanging out, watching wildlife and nature. I highly recommend checking out the other CC that has forums for cruisers. We booked excursions at each stop, but none was through the ship. People on the forums had fabulous suggestions, and we took their advice for a rental car land trip into Yukon Territory, sea kayaking, a helicopter trip to Mendenhall Glacier.
We LOVED the helicopter ride to the glaciers!
Note that Holland America and Princess cruise lines are both owned by the same company (Carnival). The only cruise that I have been on was one of them, and at every stop, there was the same ship from the other one – i.e. they were doing the same cruise with the two ships of the different brands.
Okay… multiple HA cruise passenger here:
It’s been far too many years, but we’ve gone on multiple Alaskan cruises with HA, and one on a “cruise line that shall not be named”, and one on Princess and one on Cunard (are they still in business? Or merged?)…
By far the best was our last was an extensive sea/land tour (trip of a lifetime!). On the land portion, we were able to go on a tour in Denali that started at 6 am and ended at 6 pm-ish. Our guide on the bus was a retired gentleman who was into researching all things Denali, and it showed in his manner and information shared. We saw, from a distance, a lot of wildlife. By starting close to dawn, and running through dusk, wildlife is more active during those hours.
HA has a long history in Denali, and branded lodging, tour buses, and train cars.
Because we were with our two (then) young children, we did a “suite”, as it was less expensive. It came with some perks, and services that were very helpful. I managed to choose midship rooms, the rear of a ship can tend to be noisy or have a lot of vibrations from the engines (even at the highest levels).
We did attend some of the evening shows, but DP drinks a little, but not a lot, so we did other things.
We regularly enjoyed the daily quiz (won the day’s prize a lot!), particularly researching in the library to find the answers. I still have/use the branded mugs and other tokens.
I’m sure there’s more to add, but I feel like I’ve “talked” too much already. Any specific queries I might address?
Also owned by Carnival, like Holland America and Princess
Thank you everyone for your help!
Cruise is booked and am looking at shore excursions!
Someone mentioned that there is a dedicated cruise chat here on CC? I couldn’t find it — would someone be able to post the link?
Thanks!!
I think they were talking about the other CC, cruise critic.
We have a retirement travel thread, you could post on there
Congratulations! When are you going?
Thanks! That makes sense!
End of August. It’s my first cruise — we usually tend towards the “do it ourselves” type of trip instead, and I’m excited to see what it’s like!